Pleating machine



Feb. 2, 1960 Filed Oct. '7, 1957 G. EZBELENT PLEATING MACHINE 6Sheets-Sheet 1 G. EZBELENT PLEATING MACHINE Feb. 2 1960 6 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed Oct. 7, 1957 to h tz TA 5 G. EZBELENT PLEATING MACHINE Feb. 2,19g;

6 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed 001:. 7, .1957

Feb. 2, 1960 G. EZBELENT 2,923,447

PLEATING MACHINE Filed 001:. 7, 195"! 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 nnnnnn'nunnn Feb.2, 1960 G. EZBELENT 7 PLEATING MACHINE Filed Oct. 7, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet5 ll-NI III .1:

A 11g .16 a

ggiigm $6 8 EiglQ Eig.23

Feb; 2, 1960 G. EZBELENT 2,923,4 7

PLEATING MACHINE Filed 001;. 7, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 i zs ligas lj n kPLEATING .MACHINE Georges Ezlielent, Paris, France Application October7, 1957, Serial No. 688,759 Claims priority, application France April27, 1957 20 cranes. (Cl. 223-30 .The present invention relates to thepleating of an article of rectangular or like-shaped piece of cloth orany other foldable material and m ore particularly, to the obtainment ofconical'or sun"pleatinginwhich each pleat has in plan a triangular ortrapezoidal shape, its Width diminishing from one end to the other. i

Such pleating has heretofore been obtained byv plac-j ing the articlebetween two flattened-out previously pleated sheets, of cardboard. 'Theassemblyis pleated along the pleat lines of the two sheets and then putin ahotpress.

An automatic type of pleating machine is known, comprising acomb-carrying'gripping device, to which are imparted alternatingmovements of adjustable amplitude forming successive loops in the,object to be pleated, and rotating rolls which draw on or drive andpress'these loops so as to obtain fold lines. These high-output machinesonly permit obtaining pleats of a constant width, that is pleats havingparallel fold lines, to the exclusion of any conical'or sun pleating.

The object of the'invention is to provide a pleating machine of theaforementioned type, improved in such manner as to permit obtainingconical pleating.

This machine is characterized in that at least one "of its driving andpressing rolls is mounted for swinging movement about a fixedcentredisposedon the axis of the roll, whereby in the course of theswinging move ments said axis assumes an inclination relative to thecombs while remaining parallel with the common tangent plane of the tworolls.

According to another feature of the invention, at least one of the'rollsis mountedin such manner that these rolls are capable of being separatedand said rolls are combined with two actuating devices which are soadapted that at predetermined moments of a pleating cycle beforerotation of the rolls, one of said devicesswings theswingable roll aboutsaid centre and theother device separates the two rolls, the swingingmovement of the swingable roll in one direction occurring when the rollsare separated whereas the swinging movement in the other directionoccurs when the rolls are in contact.

In one embodiment of the1inventi0n,'one of the rolls is so mounted thatits axis is capable, on the one hand,

of swinging about a centre which substantially coincides with the centreof one of the bearings, and, on the other hand, of moving in verticaltranslation under the effect of said two actuating devices, on the onehand, in a direction parallel with the tangent plane of the rolls and,on the other hand, in a direction perpendicular to said tangent plane(which results in separation of the rolls), whereby each point of theaxis of 1 said roll describes a closed path having a substantiallyrectangular shape.

; The other roll may be mounted in the same manner as the first roll, orhave a fixed axis.

The invention permits obtaining conical pleating of any desired angleand width in any article and in par ticular in bands having paralleledges which are automodification of the machine, which, apart from thematically fed into the machine in a direction parallel with said edges;f;

Another object of the invention is to provide articles in which havebeen formed conical pleatings obtained by means of the machine of theinvention.

Further features and advantages of the invention will be apparent fromthe ensuing description with reference to the accompanying drawings, towhichthe invention is in no way limited.

In the drawings: g

' Fig. 1 is a side "elevational view, with parts cut away, of a pleatingmachine embodying the invention'of the type comprising two movablerolls; I, l

Fig. 2' is a vertical cross-sectional view .taken along line 2--2 ofFig. 1, with parts cutaway; 7 Y 1' f Fig. 3.is a time-displacementdiagram of ,the ca m's ot the machine shown in Figs. 1 and 2; j '9 Figs.4 to 10 are diagrams representing in vertical section the various stagesof a pleating cycle of the; in vention; I q 7 Figs. 11 to .14 are planviews on an enlarged scale, corresponding to Figs. 4, 7, 9 and 10; v V,1 Fig. 15 shows diagrammatically, by wa'yiof example, some types ofpleating obtainable with the'machine-of the invention; 7 V Fig. 16 is aside elevational view, similar to Fig; 1 of a modification of themachine in which only the upperroll is movable; I v p p Fig. 17 is acorresponding time chart; I Figs. 18 to 24 are diagrams similar to Figs.'4 to 1 0 and representing in vertical section the various'stages ofpleat formation; j Figs. 25 to" 28 are plan views on. an 'enlarged'scalecorresponding to Figs. 18, 20,921, and 24 respectively;

Fig. 29 is a time-displacement diagramof a second settings, is identicalto' the machine shown in Fig. :16, and Figs. 30 to 36 are diagramssimilar to Figs. 18 to 24 representing in vertical section the variousstages of the formation of a pleat with this second modification of thea machine. t

In the ensuing description, the direction of movement of the articles tobe pleated, indicated ,by arrow f in Fig. 1, will be termed the forwarddirection. j In' the embodiment shown inFigs. 1 and2, the pleat:

ing machine is of the known, type comprising a stand having two sidemembers 1 and 2' which are vertical and parallel. with the'verticallongitudinal plane of symmetry SS. These two side members are suitablybraced and carry on their upper horizontal edges two longitudinalisupports 3 and 4.

, The support 3 'is, for example, rigidly secured to the member 1 as inmachines of known type. On the other hand, thesupport 4- is, accordingtothe present inven tion, mounted on the member 2 for movement inlongitudinal translation. This support 4 is retained by re taining andstop screws 5 (Fig. 1) extending through elongated apertures 6.These'stop screws or abutments determine theforward position ofthesupport 4- the apertures 6 providing a longitudinal clearance a (Fig.1)" which corresponds to the maximu rn 'desired rearward travel of thesupport 4. This travel may bereduc ed and even eliminated by means of anadjustable abutment or stop screw 7 which is scr'eW-threadedly engaged"in a lug 8 formed on the side member '2 (Fig 1 The c actuating deviceadapted to impart to the support 4 its alternating longitudinalmovements will'be described" hereinafter with the other new devicesincorporatedpini accordance with the invention,'in' the pleating machineof known type.

' FatenteclFe-b. v2,

' the axes of the journals 14,

Y Before describing these new devices, mention will bemadQSf'ttiEiifihiSdifif' iiitk' 6f flieanaehine" adapted 1' to co-operate wtihthese nevig; devices in accordance with a prede ermine syr e- 1 pThismaliine'c fir rises therefore, as known per; sen 5 ,(a )i.,Agripping devi e; P, adapted. to feedthearticle ft" bejlefitdinthef'fci'wafd'direction a distaineie detfmined bythe, adjustabletravel of this gripping device supp r i' me By a h etb 'p p r'sim liarmaterialfwhich 'isjunwound from a reel 9 having.

a ltlljournaillied in theside'membersl and 2, passes fenia'smnr II'a'ndthereafter form's a horiz ontal sup; port sheet contained in a plane TT.(2,) An upper. roll 12- and a lower roll 13. disposed forwardliytoffsaidgrippingdevice P] and rgotatahly mount- 5 ed inth suppofts'iiflandl4Q NThe gripping. device), which is of the conv entional rypfe," comprises'twb"'r ajral1e1,331iites1 16 which are fixed on two ihorizontaljournals 1'4 capable of movingfin twot apert uresH S fofmedbetween theside members 1; and 2 and-thesupportsfi and' tan'df are rigidlyinterconnected eyjtiiig rjom met 17 which is'extended by 'a first, comb18' adapted i id form 'oheerthe flexible jaws at the, grippingdevice;the other jawrof. the latter is formed by an uppiencomb 19 fixed-on aj'support 20 is Pit at? t want fliel We R t -.e% f pgct e arm's. 12-wliich'fparticipate in 11S pivotal movements: 'Ths e arms are ar eab'y'springsf22 which egn nect them to thesupport 17 .v and tendftd close thej y inoppositionto rotational movement therewith P555 511 full revolu-"tionofthe'shaft, the cam plate C is therefore driven 1;. T revolutionintwo fractions or a revolution of each. In thepresently+describedexample;;n= 12. Movable on the plate C in .thedirection parallel with the axis, are 'rts'tuds 41 which, according totheir longi 1 tudinal position; protrude from ;or

do not protrude from the left side or face of this plate (Fig. 2). Eachprotruding rod in one or theother of the successive stop positions a;tee a)":

area for pivotal-.niovemeht about.

iassr 9. i he? 'F H i- 5 action ,of a spring 43?; close pivot;

men a pin 43 and p ing pin 43 :a 'trian gular sector, 44 which ispivotably.

"il lg this lever 42 drives, the medium; of a slidmouptled on a s ft 7:8and carries a roller 45; The

i rii stya s; We sales; 5 w jc' re nt rm d'P by a spring 46 and arejourhalled at 16 1a one of the plates 16 of; the gripping;device P. VThe arrangement gt seitaeei rbiai i Q iFQ s l. 0 Y tia w gn hefine rw rsp edr n w This gripping device P is capable of undergoing'thrieef studsthe gripp ir g d ig P d dl i li q,

1 types of movements; aitorward andgbaclvv ard alternatwhich is pivotably mounted at its other" enaon thejjcofi-i rereadin ig aat A; E ch 5 1 v1 8 i r a slidable journal ZQ whjch' is adjustahle jalongthejleverngithe njiech anieal advantagel "This journaf 2 9 is journalled-at 341 in an adjusting leve'r 31 which is a y abl figumedt t 3 n th i'i i 2; 50 d eld in adjfistabl'e position by a scr ew-threaded stud; k "scerried by the corresponding side memberfand; i tlahr h arq tel l n dr ate @147, a iglampiug nut, 35 screw;threadedly I engaged: on this: stu il he o e in n sl i e mo em of the ppin devieeiB are obtained by means ofthe. peripheries Cl qfip hq 11 h e ri l C2, engaging T o the. medium ofroller sSfi two. levers 37 journalled at g 3 8;in the side. members ofthe standand:each;actuating. a., p ush member. 39 which permitspivoting. upwardly the arrnZI, rigidly securedto the upper jaw ofthegripping device; in the direction'to open the latter in opposition tothe action oi the spring 22;

The pivotingmovements of the gripping device about the joornals 14; are,,obtained by means. of a cam plate. C i mounted on the shaft 23 aboutwhich it is capable, of rotating intermittently a prev-determineddistancezum der the efleet of a link 40; rotatably mountedxat itl oniapeccentric journal for, example; carried by. Zone of; the; Thelink 4Qishconnectedjby a crank ltob m a shaft.4tl f which actuatesathroughanotherlcrank; 40.4:

pawl 31i L gd340 EwhiQhi co-operate i with; a ratchet? wheel 40 which isconnected to the. cammlateeCii-rforr w rea it r e when a li -i i in t rthe n er,

fiTh rqllslztia idg 1,3 are; a ied. y: wo sha t viewedin Fig.2) on theside member l and on the fixed upport 3s speq ve yr f ha s d r t y;'journalled the side member, Wh reas the fi ifflz iqu a ed in a! hea'jtil wh ch-:i 1s dab1y. mou hetwfim tvvo guides: 50 carried by, thesupport 3-(Fig. A. spr g 5.1 which is adiu ta le v ans f a screvgfigscremthreadedly' engaged in a transverse, mem 2Q; 53, permits adjusting;the pressure exerted" by the QQtrqspouding end of; the roll 12 911. theroll 13,

When they are in contact, these rollsvhave a common tangent plane;coinciding ;witht theyplane -Tllwin which thej.;article A (carried;bytthej support B) moves in a;

forward direction; fromf thei ii put end of-the machines and thencebetween theirtolls; V

1 At. their. otherends; the shafts, 47 3116124811 are mountedinvianovelmanner. at v Ingthe conventional; method of mounting; the. shaft; 41 'ofthe roll;1 2 is journalledain awsupport member which ,is; similar-,to:the member 4 :but is permanently S621 cured tojthe sideAmemberQZ', and"the shaft 48 of the. lower roll 13;.isdirect1y; journalledzin' thissidemember,

2: The} arrangement 1 according" to i the; invention is as follows.:. i7 a l (a) The twoshaftsaare carried by the support 4,whichisscapableiofsliding along thelmember, 2.

v (b:) The upper; shaft 47 i is journalled in a bearing 54, which i is,slidable between two i uprights .55 rigidly se: cured to. thesupporttdiand isurged downwardly. by a springi56adjustab1elbyimeansiofascrew 57. a

(0); The shaft- 48 isjournalled in i a depending pore tionv58rvriliichTforinspart of 'thersamematerial as. or is.

rigidly secured t'o,'theYslidingrsupporti t, so that'the end of the roll13 participates in the altemating longitudinal movements ofthensup'p'ortt 4. in. the same. manner as the 1 corresponding end ofther-IQIIQ IZ hejmach nei urt qrlcomprises; other conventio a dc vicessuchrzast f the upper roll 12 and has such length as to form on theoutput side of the roll a loop tensioned by a freely movablecounterweight 60. Owing to the action of the counterweight 60, a lowerportion of the loop surrounds has been shown only in Fig. 1 and omittedfrom Fig. 2. for the sake of clarity, would be positioned on the leftside of Fig. 2 outside the side members. The device comprises a link 61pivoted at one end to the corresponding journal of the gripping device Pand pivoted at its other end 62 to a lever 63 pivoted at 64 to the sidemember 1. A link 66. is pivoted to the lever 63 at 65 and connects thelever 63 to another lever 67 which is rotatably mounted on thecorresponding end of the shaft 48 of the lower roll 13 and carries apawl 68 which co-operates with a ratchet wheel 69 keyed to the shaft 48.The arrangement is such that this shaft, and in consequence the roll 13,is driven in the direction of arrow i when the gripping device P movesrearwardly toward the input side of the machine; the intermittentrotational movements thus imparted to the roll 13 are transmitted to theroll 12 in the direction of arrow f by two gears 70 and 71 keyed to theshafts 48 and 49 respectively.

(c) A metal sheet 72 which is positioned on the output side of themachine between the two side members 1 and 2 below the loop formed bythe felt band 59, and receives the finished pleated article.

. (d) Two convergent counter-combs 73 and 74 disposed on the input sideof the rolls 12 and 13. One comb is urged against the roll 12 by aspring 75 whereas the other is urged against the roll 13 by the actionof its own weight.

' The arrangement just described, which is of known type apart from thesliding support 4 and the particular mounting of the rolls 12 and 13 inthis sliding support, is improved in accordance with the invention bythe following features:

(a) The shafts 47 and 48 have such play in their bearings as to permitthe axes XX and YY of the two rolls to swing in the horizontal planescontaining these axes. It will be observed that this play or clearanceis in fact very small, since the swinging movements are not very great,namely from about a few millimetres to a few centimetres, where as thelength of the rolls is generally about 2 metres. 7

(b) Two devices are provided which are synchronized with theaforementioned cams C and C for, on the one hand, imparting alongitudinal alternating movement to the support 4 so as to swing theaxes XX and,

YY in horizontal planes about pivot centres O, Q situated substantiallyin the centre of the two bearings carried by the support 3 and the sidemember 1, and, on the other hand, moving the axis XX of the roll 12 intranslation and thus moving this roll in the vertical transverse planeUU (Fig. 1).

The first actuating device comprises a single cam C keyed to the shaft23 and co-operating by way of a roller 76 with a lever 77 pivotablymounted on a journal 78 carried by the side member 2. This lever isbiased by a spring 79 which holds the roller 76 against the cam C Theupper end of the lever comprises an elongated aperture 80 in which isengaged a pin 81 fixed to the support 4. The longitudinal position ofthe latter therefore depends on the contour of the cam C The secondactuating device, adapted to impart vertical movements of translation tothe roll 12, comprises two twin cams C keyed to the shaft 23 andco-operating through the medium of two rollers 82with twolevers 83having two arms which links 84 conue'ct'to' two levers 85 which arearcuate to avoid the shaft 48 of the roll 14. These levers 85, whichbear against the endsof.

shouldered journals 85 of the'counterweight roller 60 tensioning thefelt band 59, are pivotably mounted on journals 86 (Fig. 1) provided onthe supports 3 and 4. They carry two rollers 87 positioned to moveupwardly against cylindrical bearing surfaces 88 provided on the shaft47 of the upper roll 12. Thus, when the-links 84 pivot the levers 85 inthe counterclockwise, direction about their journals 86, these leversraise simultaneously: on the one hand, the felt band 59, through themedium of the roller60 so as tomove this felt band a suflicient dis- 1tance away from theroll 13 and thus release the pleated part of thearticle engaged between the roll and the felt band, and, on the otherhand, the shaft 47, thus causing the latter and the roll 12 to moveupwardly away from the tangent plane TT- Fig. 3 shows the time anddisplacement diagrams of the aforementioned cams C to C in the form ofcurves I to V and, at V1, the periodof rotation of the rolls 12 and 13.The times t have been plotted as abscissae.

The ordinates of the various curves represent the lifts and falls of thecamsgthe actual values thereof have not been shown in correct scale tosimplify the plotting of the diagram. I

Before the start of the pleating operatiomthe machine is adjusted, thatit to say, the screw 7 carried atthe end of the side member 2 (Fig. 1)is screwed or unscrewed so as to adjust to a given value b, notexceeding the clearance a permitted by the elongated apertures 6, thelongitudinal travel of the sliding support 4 and thereby determine theconicity of the pleating, that is the convergence of the pleat lines.

Let it be assumed that at time t, at the start of the formation of apleat, the work A already comprises a number of formed pleats which havepassed between the two rolls 12 and 13. The machine is in the positionshown in Figs. land 2 and the article is in the. position shown in Figs.4 and 11. Fig. 11 shows'the two last preceding pleats p and p layersoffabric 91, 92 and 93 which are pleated in zigzag manner and areinterconnected by two fold lines 89, and 89 90 The layer 91 of the pleatp is connected to the part of the article which is not yet pleatedwhereas the layer 93 is connected to the already pleated part.' In

each pleat the two fold lines are convergent andrfrom.

one pleat to the following pleat the fold lines 39 and 89 areconvergent, as are the lines 90 and 90 At time t the gripping device Pis in its extreme rear position and is adjusted by positioning thejournal 29' by means of the lever 31. This gripping device is closed bythe spring 22 and its median plane coincides'with the plane TI. Further,the rolls are'held stationary;

they are in contact in this tangent plane and their axes of the roll 12of the centre 0 of the swinging movement of the roll and the line ofcontact of the two rolls.

Right from the start of the cycle, the cam C causes a progressivedownward tilting of the gripping device P (compare the positions shownin Figs. 4 to 7); maximum- 1' inclination is reached at time 2 1 At time1 the cams C cause the upper roll 12 to rise to 12 (Fig. 5), the centreof the right end of the roll (as viewed in Fig. 2) disposed on the axisXX rises from point q to the point r. At the same time, the felt band-59 is raised equally over its entire width.

Then, at time 1 the cam C starts to move the sliding support 4 forwardlyin the direction of arrow 7, which causes the axes of the two rolls toswing forwardly about; their respective centresO .andfQ toward theoutput;

Each pleat comprises three 'sideo the machine. t e. wi sins noxementsterminating.

a time w eupon t e o l e n he posit n .hown in 6-; The centre of the riht nd of the;. .o 1.2.

arse-nee moves from 10 s, whereas the centreof the right. end;

of the lower'roll 13.mo ves from v to w. The axis-YY has swung. exactlyin a horizontal plane parallel with the. plane. 'IT in a similar mannerto the axis 'XX, The;

telt band 59. also swings forwardly with theroll 12.

Fig. 12 shows. at x the positions assumed in the plane of the article bythe generatrices of the rolls, the. latter having. swung horizontallythrough. an angle y. corre-.

ponding to the setting. of the travel or stroke b of the sliding support4. 1 c

Meanwhile, at time the gripping device which is.

still closed and has reached its maximum downward inclination, starts.to move forwardly and. reaches the.

extreme forward position at time. :5 (Fig. 9). Between.

these two positions this gripping device movesrthev 1m...

pleated 'part .of the article with a movement of longi: tudinaltranslation and produces a loop z which, ':in the absence of anymovement of the rolls, would have a constant length and would producepleating having. parallel fold lines. i

unid r qt o e act..- is inope ati e; t es tells. no onge Qndergea W 9gng otemept and. the leatin obta n: stra ght or-parallels l an xerspdimensions, of the pleats can also be;

Q. in m9d 1edlbynrowingthe leyersfi an y means. fthe i et 9t etratablestndsfor projections. 41. carried. by the.

cam plate C ,.it is possible to determine the direction;

ofi' heipleats. l

'lfhegripping device. P can be. caused. to .point up.

.warclly, corresponding. to. thehdotedash line 111 inFig. .3,

thereby obtaining thefiat pleating A shown in Fig.

w er as: the. curv'ejIII. provides the. flat pleating A 0.

. It is of course. possible to combine the two types of.

I pleating and obtain, for example, the Watteau pleats.

ing. shown at A? in Fig. 15. or .the doublev Watteau=,

pleating Ator. anyother. desired pleat arrangement.

. The machine has .therefore a very. great adaptability.

since it permits; obtaining. any typeof pleating. Y Fig. l6 shows amodification of the machine in which.

all the devices. of-themachine describedhereinbefore are incorporated.However, the lower roll 13 does not participate in the swingingmovements. of the upper roll- But, from time; (Fig. 6) to-time t(Fig.7), the

. andlQ through an angle equal to y so that the. centre ofthe end of theroller .12 returns from position-Lu to the original position :1 (Fig. 8)and thus terminates a movement through a path inthe form of aparallelogram qrsz t, whereas theline of contact: between the two'rollsresumes (Fig. 13) the initial direction or it had'at' the start (Fig. 11V In the course ofthe'rearward swinging movements of the two rolls 1;and 13, the latter, which grip the article at the rear of the last pleatp formed, shift l iearwardly not only the portion of the gripped workbut also the whole series of preceding pleats whichare held against the)roll 13 by the felt band 6 9 which participates. in

the movement, and all this part of the article swings about the centre 0and undergoes a circular translation in thehorizontal plane. i a

As a result of this movement, the line 90 pertaining to the new pleat pin the course of execution (Fig. 13) assumes; relative .to the dot-dashline. 94, which would correspond to a' straight pleat obtained solelywith the combs, an inclination 'y/2 which is finally obtained b e.

in the directionrparallel with1 the tangent plane This roll 13 *isjoilrnalled directly in-the two side membersl and-=2.

Further, although the cams CHC and the cam plate (2 pertainingto the'gripping device P have the; same settings as those" in the foregoingembodiment (see the curves I, II, III andlVof the diagram shown in Fige1 7 the cams: C -and C 'are displacedabout- 180 relative to theirpositions in the foregoing embodiment (see the curves- I-V and'V of thediagram shown in Fig. 17). The operational cycle. is therefore modified.Inligs; 18 and 25, which correspond to time .19; p

and p represent the two last pleats formed with their. foldlines'respectively 95 and 965-959 and 96 downwardly convergent, whereasthe fold lines. 96 and 36' relating to'the two consecutivepleatsupwardly converge. The line'of contact of the tworolls isstill thedot-dash line expand. the grippingfdevice P is in its" extremerearposition V 1 i i l i From time 't'to time t the gripping device?istilted and passes trom the position shown, in Fig. 18 to thatshown in:Fig. 19.

. 'Then from time 1 to i this; gripping device moves forwardly andpasses from the position shown in'Fig. 19

i to that shownin Fig. 2 0, and it forms a loop z which can be seenin'Fig 2 6. This loop. has a constant width, the two fold lines 95] and969tb eing parallel.

. i From timer 'to time t', the cam'C swings the'upper tween the tw'ofold lines 89 and 90 in the new pleat 7 p3. Thelatter is the desiredconical pleating, the anglej y/Z of which isobtain'ed' by suitablychoosing the travel; b ofthe movablesupport 4. r

Meanwhile, at time r the gripping device P starts to. move away fronrtherolls under the effect of the cam Q while it opens under the effect ofthe periphery, Q of the cams C from time 2 to time tl and, simultaneously, under the effect of the lever connecting mechanism 61-.69 thetwo rolls rotate. in the direction of arrows 3a and f (Fig. i Fig. 10shows the unitat an intermediate time such as tl At time the cycle isterminated, the, gripping de.- vice P stops and closes andsimnltaneously the rolls 12 and 13 cease to rotate. These rolls pressthe pleat p? which assumes the position that the pleat p formallyassumedforward of. the line of contact ox (Fig. 14).

A new cycle forming the next pleating nowf CQlIl m enees.

' n the course screw-7, that is, the travel I; of thevsupport 4,in:the;;

extreme case this-support could be. blocked inits;

of prior adjustment ofthe. abutmentroll12 in a horizontal plane so that,the centre. of .its

right end (as viewed in'Fig. 2) passes from q to u (Fig,

2:1) and entrains therewith, in a movement of circular: translation thelayer 98 of the fabric which connects the preceding pleat p to the pleatin course of formation. The. series of previously formed pleats does nothinder this movement because the band 59 moved forwardly with the roll12 The lower generatrix of the roll finally,

swings to ox at anangle y, the value of which depends on the setting ofthe travelb of the support 4. Owing to the driving of. the portion 98 ofthe article, the fold 7 line 96}?- shown in Fig. .26 is. inclined at 96(Fig. 27),

and thus provides thedesiredconical pleating 12 whose.

two fold lines and 96 converge and. form therebetween an angle 7 y/Z.

Meanwhile, from time to time t the cams C Jraise he .12 e ent e q pa ito s; Then. fr m. tirneft. to time; 19, the. ca m Ci swings the roll 1Z1rear, w the l still he rs-lie it are os tion s hat. he sewe apa q romr Wi B rialshis. taflthenha n .lillenstro r' I.

reatise esnra ii p sttion we the otrhav ns enlw in the first embodimentthe operative part was the return travel uq. I l

Finally, the cycle terminates, as in the'first embodiment, in therearward movement of the gripping device P from time t to time itsopening from time 1 to time and the rotation of the rolls from time t totime t with the passage of the pleat p formed forwardly through the lineox, that is, frorn'its position shown in Fig. 27 to that shown in Fig.28.

The machine shown in Fig. 16, that is, the type of machine in which thelower roll is fixed whereas the upper roll is swingable in thehorizontal plane and movable in translation in the vertical directionowing to the action of the cams C and C permits another operationalcycle by means of a diiferent setting of the cams provided by thediagram shown in Fig. 29.

The curves I, II, III, IV, pertaining to the gripping device P and therotation of the rolls, remain unmodified. On the other hand, the curveIV- is displaced from t to t", and the action of the cams Ccorresponding to the raising of the upper roll is slightly displacedtoward the start of the cycle (compare the curves V and V shown in Figs.17 and 29). Under these conditions, the cycle obtained is that shown inFigs. 30 to 36. This cycle is identical to the preceding cycle up to theposition shown in Fig. 32, which corresponds to time t.

From time t to time t", the upper roll is raised by the actoin of thecams C the centre q describing the straight line qr as in the firstembodiment, then from time t to time t the cam C swings the rollforwardly, the centre q passing from r to s. During this movement, theroll has no action on the loop having parallel fold lines obtained bymeans of the gripping device P as in the preceding embodiment.

From time t to time 1 the roll 12 is lowered by the action of the cam Cthe centre q passing from s to u.

From time t to time r the gripping device P moves rearwardly and therolls 12 and 13 are rotated in the directionof arrows f and 1*, butbetween times t and 1 the upper roll 12 swings rearwardly so that thecentre q passes from u to q.

As the roll rotates during this rearward return movement, it acts on theloop having parallel foldlines obtained by means of the gripping devicewhen the latter reached the position shown in Fig. 33. Owing to thisrotation, there is obtained a circular movement of translation of theportion of fabric connecting the parallel folds loop to the precedingpleat and there is obtained the desired inclination of the two foldlines of this loop. Then, from time 2 to time the rolls continue theirrotation in their rearward position and the conical pleating obtained iscompressed and passes forwardly through the rolls and out of the machinewith the rest of the pleated part of the article.

Although specific embodiments of the invention have been described, manymodifications and changes may be made therein without departing from thescope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having now described my invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a machine for pleating an article of pleatable material such asfabric: a stand, a gripping device mounted on said stand for movementrelative thereto and having two spaced combs mounted thereon, means forfeeding the article between said combs, driving means for imparting analternating movement to said gripping means and 10 passingthrough saidloops and adapted to driv esaid and press the latter for imparting foldlines to the article;

and bearing means supporting at least one of said'rolls and connected tosaid stand and movable r'elativelyther'eto for imparting a swingingmovement to said one roll with the axis of the roll remaining constantlyparallel to said common tangent plane.

2.'In a machine as claimed in claim 1, means coupled to andsynchronizing the movements of said gripping device and said bearingmeans.

3. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, said bearing means comprisingspaced bearings supporting saidone roll, one of said bearings defining apivot axis for said one-roll, said one roll having an axis of rotationintersecting the pivot axis.

4. ha machine as claimed in claim 1, said bearing means comprisingspaced bearings supporting said one roll, one of said bearings beingmovable to accommodate the swinging movement of'said one roll, said oneroll having a play in at least one of said bearings to permit saidswinging movement.

5. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, said bearing means comprisingspaced bearings supporting said one roll and a movable supportsupporting one of the bearings.

combs to form successive transverse folds defining loops in the article,two rotatable driving and pressing rolls 6. In a machine as claimed inclaim 1, said bearing means comprising spaced bearings supporting saidone roll, a movable support supporting one of said bearings, andabutments limiting the movement of said support, one of said abutmentsbeing adjustable to control the magnitude of said swinging movement.

7. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, means supporting at least one ofsaid rolls for translatory move ment.

8. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, means supporting said one rollfor translatory movement.

9. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, means supporting saidone roll fortranslatory and reversible movement. 7 a

10. 'In a machine as claimed in claim 1, means supporting the other ofsaid rolls for swinging movement.

11. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, said bearing means comprisingmeans for moving said one roll upwardly and downwardly and thus awayfrom and towards the other-roll.

12. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, control means coupled to saidbearing means for controlling the amplitude of the swinging movement ofsaid one roll.

13. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, said bearing means comprisingcams controlling the movement of said one roll so that at least onepoint on the axis of rotation of the latter said roll describes aparallelogram.

14. A machine for pleating a pleatable material comprising means forforming successive loops in the mate rial to initiate the formation ofpleats, cylinders operatively disposed with respect to each other and tosaid means for receiving the looped material, said cylinders having axesnormally in a common plane and providing for pressing the loops intopleats, said cylinders defining normal axes of rotation, and supportmeans supporting one of the cylinders for a swinging movement during thepressing of a pleat so that the axis of rotation of said one cylinder isangularly displaced in a direction having a vector transverse to saidplane whereby the pleat is urged into and pressed in convergentconfiguration.

15. A machine as claimed in claim 14 wherein the first said meanscomprises a gripper for gripping and moving the material and combsoperatively associated with the gripper for forming loops in thematerial; said ma-' mounted on said stand, having a common tangent planecylinder and supporting same, one of the bearings having esiemmummnqsitionx m definin -a nimn lfor. th

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29-. 11; le sing mm f e m indqvi srcl riye meehahis grfq;iglrivingzitheret'hzough in a normal direction I of :igoyemehbSmateriaI-tq be pleated; conibs operatively 'm alii'iiwithfgthci driye; mechanismand: reciprocat'edl ta centsaidmombsqfpr driving and-pressing the:pleated'mar, terial; lheimprovement-cqmprising means a ng ularlymovingoneojf said ro1l s with. respect to theqcombsi'in thedi-I rectionof movement of the materialduring each 'pleat;

